Stephen Hawking

Stephen William Hawking (8 January 1942 – 14 March 2018) was an English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author. He served as the director of research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology at the University of Cambridge at the time of his death. From 1979 to 2009, Hawking held the prestigious position of Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge. Born in Oxford, Hawking began his university education at University College, Oxford, before completing his graduate work at Trinity Hall, Cambridge. He obtained a first-class BA degree in physics and a PhD degree in applied mathematics and theoretical physics. At the age of 21, Hawking was diagnosed with motor neurone disease, which gradually paralyzed him over the years.